Life Media Survey 2025: A Baseline Study of Digital Media Use and Well-being Among 11- to 13-year-olds

Children who post publicly on social media even occasionally are more likely than their peers to report feeling depressed and anxious and get too little sleep, according to the results of a new, large-scale survey that sheds new light on how young people’s use of social media and devices can affect their lives in profound ways. The survey, which was conducted by researchers from seven universities and will be repeated annually with the same group to assess how their experiences change over time—included about 1,500 11- to 13-year-olds in Florida who participated last November and December. It questioned them about a wide range of online behaviors and how commonly they engage in them or experience them, including news consumption, sharing false information, cyberbullying, and engagement with social media influencers, many of which previously had not been studied, according to the report. The report offers fresh insights for school and district leaders as they continue to navigate rapidly evolving technology and its effect on children’s mental health, engagement in class, attendance, and more.